Officers: prévôtés, bailiwicks, seneschals · Kingdom of England · as at first light, 1 January 1200

Stannaries

The tin of Dartmoor and Cornwall is the richest mineral of the British Isles and a royal monopoly in all but name.

The tinners dig and stream for tin on almost any waste ground, smelt it, and must bring it to be weighed and stamped before it can be sold, paying the king's duty on every stamped block. Since 1197-98 William of Wrotham has tightened the system: the tin is weighed under his officers, the tinners' custom is set down, and offenders go to the new castle-prison at Lydford, built in 1195 and used as the stannary prison from 1198. The tinners have their own customs and courts, but the great charter of their liberties is still to come, in 1201.

Who he is

Name
William of Wrotham
Title
Warden of the stannaries of Devon and Cornwall
Since
1197, appointed under Hubert Walter's government
Born
Not pinned
Family
A royal clerk; later archdeacon of Taunton and keeper of the king's ships and ports
Confidence
medium

Wrotham reorganised the tin trade in 1197-98 and was joint sheriff of Devon and Cornwall from Michaelmas 1198 to Easter 1199. That he is still warden on 1 January 1200 is likely but not pinned.

Overlord

King John

What it holds

  • The duty on all tin weighed and stamped in Devon and Cornwall
  • Jurisdiction over the tinners in matters of the tin works
  • Lydford castle as the prison for the forest and stannary courts of Devon
  • The pre-emption of tin for the king's use

How it was acquired

The crown's rights in tin go back before the Conquest in Devon and were exercised through the earls of Cornwall while there was an earl; reorganised under Richard I in 1197-98.

Allies and rivals

The tinners against the landholders whose ground they dig; the bishops of Exeter and the abbots of Tavistock, whose lands hold tin; the sheriffs of Devon and Cornwall.

How things stand that morning

Run by the warden for the king. Output is high in the late 1190s according to the Pipe Rolls (no figures given here).

Wealth

Tin, sold to Flemish, French and Italian merchants and used for pewter and bronze. No figures.

Military

No troops of its own; Lydford castle is a prison, not a fortress.

Threats

  • Landholders' complaints of tinners' damage
  • Smuggling of unstamped tin

What the year holds

What happened next, if nothing in play changes it. Each event carries what it depends on and what would stop it.

  1. 1201John's charter to the tinners of Devon and Cornwall confirms their freedom to dig in the lands of bishops, abbots and earls and their exemption from ordinary courts except in matters of life and limb.Depends on: John's need for the tinners' money and goodwill Stopped by: Outside 1200; noted for the long view

Places of note

  • Lydford castle: Stannary and forest prison, built 1195
  • Tavistock: Tin town on the western edge of Dartmoor
  • Ashburton: Tin town on the eastern edge of Dartmoor
  • Bodmin: Chief town of the Cornish tin country

Where the sources disagree

Evidence: Wrotham's reforms of 1197-98 and Lydford's role are well attested; which towns already served as coinage towns in 1198-1200 is not pinned (Bodmin, Liskeard, Lostwithiel, Truro and Helston in Cornwall, Tavistock, Ashburton and Chagford in Devon are the later set).

On the map: The stannaries were a jurisdiction over tinners, not a territory; the tin districts are shown only by their towns.

Primary sources for England

Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.

  • Chronicle of Jocelin of Brakelond, Jocelin of Brakelond (about 1198 to 1203). An inside account of Bury St Edmunds under Abbot Samson, written while the events were fresh. Read online
  • Chronicle of Melrose, Anonymous (monks of Melrose abbey) (about 1173 to 1270, in many hands; the 1200 entries are near contemporary). The main Scottish annal for the year, kept at a Cistercian house on the Tweed. Read online
  • Chronicle of Roger of Howden, Roger of Howden (about 1192 to 1201). The fullest single narrative for the year. Read online
  • Chronicle of the Princes, Anonymous (Welsh translation of a lost Latin chronicle kept at Strata Florida) (Latin original to about 1282, compiled from contemporary annals; Welsh versions about 1300 and later). The native Welsh record of the year. Read online
  • Chronicle; Deeds of the Kings, Gervase of Canterbury (Chronica about 1188 to 1199; Gesta Regum about 1199 to 1210). The Chronica stops in 1199, so for 1200 the witness is the briefer Gesta Regum, which notes John's peace with Philip, the coronation of Isabella at Westminster on 8 October 1200, and matters touching Canterbury: the archbishop Hubert Walter as chancellor, the cathedral priory's quarrel with him, and the Lambeth college dispute lately settled by the pope. Read online
  • English Chronicle of Ralph of Coggeshall, Ralph of Coggeshall (about 1200 to 1224, in stages). Short but independent entries for 1200 from a Cistercian house in Essex: John's levy on the Cistercians and the carucage, the peace with Philip, the king's new marriage and the queen's coronation, and the death of Hugh of Lincoln. Read online
  • Flowers of History, Roger of Wendover (about 1220 to 1235 at St Albans). For 1200 Wendover is mostly Howden rewritten, so he is a second witness only where he adds St Albans material: a long account of Hugh of Lincoln's last months, death and funeral, and anecdotes about John's conduct toward the Cistercians and his new queen. Read online
  • Images of History, Ralph de Diceto (about 1188 to 1202). A London view of the year from the dean of St Paul's, who knew the justiciar and the bishops personally. Read online

22 more in the sources library for The British Isles.

Sources and studies

  1. Lydford Castle (Wikipedia)
  2. Stannary law (Wikipedia)
  3. High Sheriff of Devon (Wikipedia, from the PRO list)

Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.